Joining Randy Couture as the only other UFC fighter to win championships in two different weight classes, B.J. Penn (12-4-1 MMA, 8-3-1 UFC) staked claim to the UFC’s vacant lightweight title with a second-round submission of Joe Stevenson (28-8 MMA, 5-2 UFC) on Saturday.

The title fight capped off UFC 80, which took place at the Metro Radio Arena in Newcastle, England. The event aired live and via tape delay on pay-per-view.

While the undercard was full of stunning knockouts, Penn relied on a submission — the night’s only one — to defeat top contender Stevenson in front of a reported sold-out crowd.

The fact that the fight made it out of the first round was the only surprise in a fight predicted to go Penn’s way. After dropping “The Ultimate Fighter 2″ winner with a right uppercut in the fight’s opening seconds, Penn glanced Stevenson with a right elbow that tore open a deep gash in the middle of his forehead.

Like a water balloon had hit pavement, both fighters were instantly soaked in blood. After a quick conference with the ringside doctor, Stevenson was allowed to continue and even connected on a few shots while holding Penn in his guard.

Stevenson finished the first round and opened the second frame with a sense of urgency. However, Penn’s onslaught and the constant stream of blood proved too much for the youngster. As the second round came to a close, Stevenson rolled out of the mount position, giving up his back. Penn sunk in the rear-naked choke. Blinded and choking on blood, Stevenson was forced to tap out.

The lightweight belt, which was recently stripped from former champ Sean Sherk after his UFC 73 drug suspension (due to steroids) was upheld, was then wrapped around Penn’s waist. It’s been nearly four years since the former welterweight champ has owned any of the UFC’s hardware.

Penn then called out Sherk, who was sitting ringside as a guest commentator for the fight.

“Sherk, you’re dead,” Penn warned.

Sherk has already been promised the first shot at Penn’s title.

On the undercard, Fabricio Werdum (10-3-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC) was apparently determined to shake the “boring” tag that’s plagued him since an April 2007 loss to Andrei Arlovski. It just took him a round to find his stride.

Facing a fellow Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt in Gabriel Gonzaga (8-3 MMA, 4-2 UFC), Werdum initially looked tentative, and in the process, took a series of leg kicks that forced him to the canvas multiple times. Gonzaga, content to keep the fight standing, continually allowed Werdum to stand for more.

However, in the second round, Werdum went on the offensive just as Gonzaga began to look flat and tired. Werdum forced his way through Gonzaga’s clinch and continually tagged him with knees to the body and head. After popping him with an uppercut, Werdum then threw Gonzaga to the mat, forcing his head against the fence. Werdum then uncorked a series of punches, and with his opponent unable to defend himself after a dozen such blows, the bout was stopped.

Werdum earned the TKO victory at 4:34 of the second round to deliver Werdum the first back-to-back losses of his career.

In other action, we can make it 11 straight for Marcus Davis (14-3 MMA, 6-1 UFC).

The UFC welterweight contender kept his winning streak alive — which now includes six straight victories in the UFC — with a quick and decisive knockout of Frenchman Jess Liaudin (12-9 MMA, 2-1 UFC).

After getting tagged with a few leg kicks, Davis had enough and threw a left hook that hit Liaudin below his right ear. And bam — down went Liaudin.

Davis, a former professional boxer who’s transformed himself into a well-rounded mixed martial artist, continues his ascent in the UFC’s 170-lb. division. Although he’s complemented his striking with a solid ground game, he didn’t need it tonight.

Davis admittedly went into the fight with a chip on his shoulder, ticked that Liaudin questioned his legitimacy as a true Irishman.

“Literally, I said I was going to punch a hole in his face,” Davis said. “I was pissed. I gotta say I was really pissed.”

Lambert dominated the light-heavyweight bout from the first bell, stalking his opponent, forcing him to the mat, and delivering a brutal barrage of ground and pound. If Gouveia broke free, Lambert was there to pounce right back on him.

Early in the second round, though, Lambert forgot a key part of the plan: defending himself. Shoved into the fence for the final time, Gouveia waited for Lambert to drop his hands and then tagged him with left-hook haymaker. Lambert’s legs disappeared, and he folded into a heap.

The bout was halted, and Gouveia scored the come-from-behind KO victory at 0:37 of the second round.

First came the stunning defeat to Patrick Cote in August, and “The Ultimate Fighter 3″ winner Kendall Grove (8-5 MMA, 3-2 UFC) can now add another upset loss to his resume — this time to veteran Jorge Rivera (15-6 MMA, 4-4 UFC).

Grove, once considered one of the most improved fighters to come out of “The Ultimate Fighter” reality series, never stood a chance in Saturday’s televised opening fight. Rivera immediately went on the offensive, scoring the early takedown and pinning Grove against the fence. Rivera unleashed a barrage of punches. Grove created some distance and got back to his feet, but Rivera continued throwing shots until his opponent hit the canvas.

Rivera never let up on the assault — and for good reason.

“I thought I hurt him with the very first punch because I saw his knees buckle,” Rivera said.

In the end, it was an 80-second TKO victory for the “Conquistador.” As for Grove, it’s back to the drawing board as his stock in the UFC’s middleweight division hits an all-time low.

UNDERCARD

In the finale of the night’s preliminary card, Antoni Hardonk (6-4 MMA, 2-2 UFC) made short work of fellow heavyweight Colin Robinson (8-4 MMA, 0-2 UFC), tagging the local favorite with a series of knees, leg kicks and punches that sent “Big C” staggering across the canvas. With his opponent dazed and unable to stand, Hardonk earned the TKO victory just 17 seconds into the fight.

British fighters Paul Kelly (7-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) and Paul Taylor (8-3-1 MMA, 1-2 UFC) were determined to dazzle the local crowd, and a frantic early exchange set the tone for the rest of the bout. In the end, though, Kelly dominated the ground war and cruised to a unanimous-decision victory (30-27, 30-27, 30-27).

After losing three of four fights in the UFC, Alessio Sakara (12-6 MMA, 3-3 UFC) has bounced back for two straight victories — his latest over James Lee (13-3 MMA, 0-1 UFC), who appeared to injure his back during a takedown attempt early in the fight. Sakara unloaded a flurry of punches that forced a TKO stoppage at 1:30 of the first round. It was the last fight at light heavyweight for Sakara, who will now compete as a middleweight in the UFC.

The event got off to a slow start when Per Eklund (12-3-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC) failed in his many takedown attempts of Sam Stout (13-3-1 MMA, 2-2 UFC). The Canadian kickboxer repeatedly stuffed Eklund’s attempts and landed enough punches to earn a unanimous decision victory (30-27, 29-27, 30-27)

A total of 26 fighters got their chance to shine on Saturday as part of UFC 190 at Rio de Janeiro’s HSBC Arena. Now that UFC 190 is in the books, it’s time to commence MMAjunkie’s “Three Stars” ceremony.

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